Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
“Al-Qayyum” is one of Allah’s Beautiful Names established in the Qur’an. Its meaning includes that Allah is self-subsisting, completely independent of all His creation, while all created beings depend upon Him for their existence, continued existence, and the management of their affairs. Therefore, the name “Al-Qayyum” includes affirmation of Allah’s existence, His permanence, and the perfection of His self-sufficiency. As for the word “existent,” it is permissible to use it when speaking about Allah, but it is not one of His Beautiful Names because it has not been established in the Qur’an or Sunnah as a name of Allah.
The name of Allah “Al-Qayyum” appears in three places in the Qur’an, and each time it is paired with the name “Al-Hayy” (the Ever-Living).
Allah says:
﴿اللَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ﴾
“Allah—there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Self-Sustaining.”
[Al-Baqarah: 255]
And He says:
﴿اللَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ﴾
“Allah—there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Self-Sustaining.”
[Aal ‘Imran: 2]
And He says:
﴿وَعَنَتِ الْوُجُوهُ لِلْحَيِّ الْقَيُّومِ وَقَدْ خَابَ مَنْ حَمَلَ ظُلْمًا﴾
“And all faces will humble themselves before the Ever-Living, the Self-Sustaining, and whoever bears wrongdoing will certainly have failed.”
[Ta-Ha: 111]
The combination of the two names “Al-Hayy, Al-Qayyum” contains magnificent meanings of perfection. “Al-Hayy” indicates the perfection of Allah’s life, while “Al-Qayyum” indicates the perfection of His self-subsistence and His sustaining and governing of His creation.
Scholars have mentioned two fundamental and inseparable meanings of the name “Al-Qayyum”:
First: The One who subsists by Himself.
Allah, Glorified be He, is completely independent of all His creatures. He does not need anyone for His existence or continuation, and He has always been and will always remain characterized by perfect attributes.
Second: The One who sustains others.
All created beings are dependent upon Allah. He is the One who brought them into existence, preserves them, provides for them, and manages their affairs. They cannot be independent of Him in either their existence or their continuation.
For this reason, “Al-Qayyum” has been explained as:
The One who subsists by Himself and sustains all others.
He, Glorified be He, is free of need from all the worlds, while all the worlds are in need of Him.
Yes. It includes affirmation of Allah’s existence in the most perfect manner.
Some commentators have mentioned that among the meanings of Al-Qayyum is:
The One whose existence is everlasting and never ceases.
Ibn Abi al-‘Izz al-Hanafi also stated that the name “Al-Qayyum” indicates that Allah exists by Himself, that He does not cease to exist, perish, or become nonexistent; rather, He is everlasting and enduring.
The point is not merely to affirm an existence for Allah like the existence of created beings. A created being was once nonexistent, then Allah brought it into existence, and it remains dependent upon its Creator for its continuation. As for Allah, Glorified be He, His existence is not derived from anyone else and does not depend upon anyone.
A distinction must be made between Allah’s names and expressions that may correctly be used when speaking about Him.
Allah’s Beautiful Names are based on revelation. We do not establish a name for Allah except with evidence from the Qur’an or Sunnah.
Therefore, “Al-Mawjud” (the Existent) is not one of Allah’s established Beautiful Names because there is no revealed text naming Allah with it.
However, it is permissible to say:
“Allah exists.”
This is a true statement intended to affirm Allah’s existence and deny nonexistence concerning Him. Muslim scholars have used this expression.
Thus, not every correct expression used to speak about Allah becomes one of His Beautiful Names.
Yes. “Mawjud” is an Arabic word derived from the root w-j-d (وجد).
The verb wajada (وجد) has several meanings in Arabic depending on the context, including finding something, knowing it, and other meanings.
The fact that the word “mawjud” is not used in the Qur’an as a description of Allah does not mean that the word is not Arabic. The Arabic language is broader than the vocabulary appearing in the Qur’an, and the Qur’an does not contain every Arabic word.
The important point concerning Allah’s names is that because “Al-Mawjud” has not been revealed as one of Allah’s names, we do not count it among His Beautiful Names. This does not mean that the word is linguistically incorrect or that it is impermissible to say that Allah exists.
The name “Al-Qayyum” is broader and more perfect in meaning than the mere word “existent.”
Saying that Allah exists establishes the basic fact of His existence. But the name “Al-Qayyum” indicates broader meanings, including:
That He subsists by Himself, is completely independent of all His creation, is everlasting and never ceases to exist, while all created beings depend upon Him, and He is the One who sustains, preserves, and manages them.
For this reason, the combination “Al-Hayy Al-Qayyum” is among the greatest expressions indicating Allah’s absolute perfection.
“Al-Qayyum” is an established name of Allah, meaning: the One who subsists by Himself, who is completely independent of His creation, and who sustains all His creatures, none of whom can be independent of Him for even a single moment. It includes affirmation of Allah’s existence, His permanence, and the perfection of His self-sufficiency.
As for the word “mawjud” (existent), it is an Arabic word, and it is permissible to say “Allah exists” as a correct statement about Him. However, it is not one of Allah’s Beautiful Names because it has not been established as His name in the Qur’an or Sunnah.
And Allah knows best.